White Sox announce 2015 player development staff
The Chicago White Sox have announced their player development staff and assignments for the 2015 season.
Joel Skinner at Class AAA Charlotte (fourth season), Julio Vinas at Class AA Birmingham (third) and Mike Gellinger with the Arizona Rookie League White Sox (second) return to manage their respective clubs in 2015. Tommy Thompson begins his third stint (2011, '13) with Class A Kannapolis after managing Class A Winston-Salem in 2014.
New managers in the organization include Tim Esmay at Winston-Salem and Cole Armstrong at Advanced Rookie Great Falls. Esmay spent the previous five seasons (2010-14) as the head coach at Arizona State University, where he led the Sun Devils to four NCAA Tournament berths and an appearance in the 2010 College World Series. He also served as the head coach at the University of Utah from 1997-99.
Armstrong enters his first season as a manager at the professional level after serving as the hitting coach with the AZL White Sox in 2014. He played 10 minor-league seasons, including five in the Chicago system (2006-10), batting .259 (589-2,270) with 65 home runs and 314 RBI.
Margaret Rall begins her second season as the head trainer with Great Falls after joining the club prior to the 2014 season. She is the first female, full-time, on-field staff member to work for the organization. Prior to joining the White Sox, Rall worked for teams at the collegiate, minor-league and independent levels, including stints with the Advanced Rookie Kingsport Mets and the Gulf Coast League Red Sox.
Pitching coaches Richard Dotson (Charlotte), Britt Burns (Birmingham), J.R. Perdew (Winston-Salem), Jose Bautista (Kannapolis), Brian Drahman (Great Falls) and Felipe Lira (AZL White Sox) will return to their posts this season.
Nick Capra enters his fourth season as the White Sox director of player development, and Kirk Champion will serve as the organization's field coordinator for the fourth consecutive season.
Following are the White Sox full player development assignments for 2015:
PLAYER DEVELOPMENT INSTRUCTORS
Director of Player Development: Nick Capra
Assistant Director of Player Development: Del Matthews
Field Coordinator: Kirk Champion
Pitching Coordinator: Curt Hasler
Hitting Coordinator: Vance Law
Hitting Instructor: Tim Laker
Infield Instructor: Ever Magallanes
Catching Instructor: John Orton
Outfield /Baserunning Instructor: Doug Sisson
Conditioning Coordinator: Dale Torborg
Minor League Medical/Rehabilitation Coordinator: Scott Takao
Physical Therapist: Brett Walker
Coaching Assistants: Jerry Hairston, Chet DiEmidio and Anthony Santiago
CLASS AAA CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS
Manager: Joel Skinner
Pitching Coach: Richard Dotson
Hitting Coach: Andy Tomberlin
Assistant Coach: Ryan Newman
Trainer: Scott Johnson
Conditioning: Chad Efron
CLASS AA BIRMINGHAM BARONS
Manager: Julio Vinas
Pitching Coach: Britt Burns
Hitting Coach: Jaime Dismuke
Trainer: Joe Geck
Conditioning: Tim Rodmaker
CLASS A WINSTON-SALEM DASH
Manager: Tim Esmay
Pitching Coach: J. R. Perdew
Hitting Coach: Charlie Poe
Trainer: Josh Fallin
Conditioning: Shawn Powell
CLASS A KANNAPOLIS INTIMIDATORS
Manager: Tommy Thompson
Pitching Coach: Jose Bautista
Hitting Coach: Rob Sasser
Trainer: James Kruk
Conditioning: George Timke
ADVANCED ROOKIE GREAT FALLS VOYAGERS
Manager: Cole Armstrong
Pitching Coach: Brian Drahman
Hitting Coach: Greg Briley
Trainer: Margaret Rall
Conditioning: Bret Kelly
ARIZONA ROOKIE LEAGUE WHITE SOX
Manager: Mike Gellinger
Pitching Coach: Felipe Lira
Hitting Coach: Gary Ward
Trainer: Cory Barton
Conditioning: Ibrahim Rivera
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ACADEMY
Academy and Field Coordinator: Rafael Santana
Manager: Julio Valdez
Pitching Coach: Leo Hernandez
Hitting Coach: Angel Gonzalez
Infield Coach: Guillermo Reyes
Outfield Coach: Rafael Rijo
Trainer: Jose Del Villar
Conditioning Coach: Pedro Gomez